Psalms 8:9

8:9 O Lord, our Lord, ¹ 

how magnificent ²  is your reputation ³  throughout the earth! ⁴ 

Psalms 39:7

39:7 But now, O Lord, upon what am I relying?

You are my only hope! ⁵ 

Psalms 92:5

92:5 How great are your works, O Lord!

Your plans are very intricate! ⁶ 

Psalms 114:5

114:5 Why do you flee, O sea?

Why do you turn back, O Jordan River?

Psalms 118:6

118:6 The Lord is on my side, ⁷  I am not afraid!

What can people do to me? ⁸ 

Psalms 119:97

מ (Mem)

119:97 O how I love your law!

All day long I meditate on it.

Psalms 120:3

120:3 How will he severely punish you,

you deceptive talker? ⁹ 

Psalms 144:3

144:3 O Lord, of what importance is the human race, ¹⁰  that you should notice them?

Of what importance is mankind, ¹¹  that you should be concerned about them? ¹² 

[8:9]  ¹ tn The plural form of the title emphasizes the Lord’s absolute sovereignty.

[8:9]  ² tn Or “awesome, majestic.”

[8:9]  ³ tn Heb “name,” which here stands metonymically for God’s reputation.

[8:9]  ⁴ sn Using the poetic device of inclusio, the psalmist ends the psalm the way he began it. The concluding refrain is identical to v. 1.

[39:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “my hope, for you it [is].”

[92:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “very deep [are] your thoughts.” God’s “thoughts” refer here to his moral design of the world, as outlined in vv. 6-15.

[118:6]  ¹³ tn Heb “for me.”

[118:6]  ¹⁴ tn The rhetorical question assumes the answer, “Nothing!” The imperfect is used in a modal sense here, indicating capability or potential. See Ps 56:11.

[120:3]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “What will he give to you, and what will he add to you, O tongue of deception?” The psalmist addresses his deceptive enemies. The Lord is the understood subject of the verbs “give” and “add.” The second part of the question echoes a standard curse formula, “thus the Lord/God will do … and thus he will add” (see Ruth 1:17; 1 Sam 3:17; 14:44; 20:13; 25:22; 2 Sam 3:9, 35; 19:13; 1 Kgs 2:23; 2 Kgs 6:31).

[144:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “What is mankind?” The singular noun אֱנוֹשׁ (’enosh) is used here in a collective sense and refers to the human race. See Ps 8:5.

[144:3]  ²² tn Heb “and the son of man.” The phrase “son of man” is used here in a collective sense and refers to human beings. For other uses of the phrase in a collective or representative manner, see Num 23:19; Ps 146:3; Isa 51:12.

[144:3]  ²³ tn Heb “take account of him.” The two imperfect verbal forms in v. 4 describe God’s characteristic activity.